Construction of expressing presses



rNov.11,19;41. C B. UPTON l 2,262,566

CONSTRUCTION OF EXPRESSING PRESSESl c. B. UPToN l CONSTRUCTION OFI EXPRESSING PRESSES Nov. 11, 1941.

Filed July 27, 1939 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 raf? QW/i

A fro/@v5 ya Patented Nov. ll, 1941 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ooNsTRUcTroN oF EXPREssiNG PRESSES Charles B. Upton, Piqua, Ohio Application July- 27, 1939, seria1N0l.,2s6,s41

(C1. o-4s) 9 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in the construction of continuous or screw presses of that type used, for expressing oil or liquid from materials, which comprise a cage or barrel into which the material is fed and means cooperating therewith, such for instance as one or more axial screws or worms rotating in said cage and acting to Vforce the material through the cage and discharge or extrude it through an opening in one end of the cage, so as to create pressure by which the oil or 'liquid is squeezed from the material and escapes through ne drainage apertures in the cage. The cage of presses of this type commonly consists of a strong skeletonized frame or body having a lining which may be constructed of bars arranged lengthwise of the cage with very thin intervening slits which form the drainage apertures for the oil or liquid.

The material to be processed in these presses is usually cooked or dried and enters the press at a temperature which may'vary from 100 to 300 degrees F., depending upon the kind of material and the method of cooking or drying it. Additional heat is developed in the process of expressing the oil from-the material in the press, due to the great friction created in moving the material through the cage and Kex'truding the' solid material through the discharge opening by the action of the rotating Worm or pressurecreating means. vMotors of from 20-to 40 or greater H P. are required for operating the presses, depending upon the size and capacity of the press and upon Ithe kind of material being processed, and high pressures and temperatures are Vdeveloped in the operation of the presses. As a result, in the use of the presses, which, in practice, are commonly operated continuously twenty-four hours a day, day in and day out, Ithe heat is transmitted from the materiad through the cage drainage linings or bars lto the heavy cage bodies, and the cages get very hot. This excessive heat is very objectionable, particularly in processing oil-bearing materials, such for example, as soy beans, cotton seed and linseed, as thereby the oil isoverheated and darkened, which reduces the quality and market price or Value of the oil.

Various attempts have been made to prevent jor reduce the high temperatures encountered in the operation of such'presses, as by circulating Water or other cooling medium through the press screw or worm shaft; by cooling the material 'after cooking or heating it and preparatory to 4its introduction into the presses; or by cooling hot oil expressed from the material being pressed and causing the cooled oil to flow externally over the cage to cool it. However, these methods of preventing high temperatures inA the presses have not proven satisfactory or are objectionable from one or another standpoint. It has been found in practice that to cool the press screw or Worm only, as mentioned, does not give sufcient cooling, as this does not adequately cool the cage and the material being processed therein. The greater the tonnage of material passed through the press the greater the horsepower required for the operation andthe greater the friction and amount of heat produced, and

the cooling of the screw or worm by,v circulating a cooling medium through the screw shaft will not take care of all this. The second mentioned scheme ofvcooling the material after cooking or drying it and before feeding it into the press adds to the expense and complication of the apparatus and process.

While a better cooling effect or temperature control is secured by the above mentioned method of flooding the cage exteriorly with oil extracted from the material being pressed, this scheme adds to the complication and cost of the apparatus and process. The oil, `which comes from the press hot, is pumped through a cooler, and the oil after being cooled, is discharged over the entire cage while the material is being processed and the oil expressed therefrom is escaping from the cage. Aside from 'the additional means required for handling and cooling vthe oil used for cooling the cage, this oil owing over the cage, not only makes a mess, but it mixes With the oil and foots escapingfrom the material beingV pressed through the `drainage openingsy of the cage, thus increasing the oxidation of oil that has to be filtered to remove the foots, and making the filtering problem more difcult, since the foots go with the oil, and they are conveyed, pumped and agitated, so that the heavy, coarsey foots -break up into ne foots, making a larger quantity of foots to be taken care of at the lilter press, thus increasing the cost of production of the finished oil.

A primary object of my invention is to provide simple, desirable, practical and efficient means for coolingthe cages of expressing presses of the type mentioned so' as to prevent objectionable temperatures in the presses during their operation.

Another object of the invention is to cool the cages of the presses to prevent high temperatures from developing in the presses duringtheir operation in a novel way which gives increased capacity and increased oil yield without deteriorating the quality of oil or cake produced.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following specification of the preferred embodiment of the invention, disclosed in the accompanying drawings, and the novel features of the invention are set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly broken away, of a screw pressv having a cage with cooling means therefor embodying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a View of the discharge end of the cage partly in section and partly in elevation,`

on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary, horizontal section of the cage in the plane of line 3-3, Fig. 2.

; Fig. 4 is a fragmentary, vertical section thereof,`

- on line 4-4, Fig. 5.

Fig'. 5 is a side elevation, partly in vertical section, of the two sections of the cage in face to face relation, -but omitting the bolts and drainage bars. l

Fig. 6 isa plan view of the cage sections of Fig. 5 partly in section, taken on line 6-6 of that figure.

Referring to the drawings, I represents the` press cage and I I the worm shaft arranged axially in the cage and equipped with the usual worms or screws I2 which, by their rotation, act to force the material lengthwise through the cage and extrude or discharge the solid material through a restricted discharge opening I3 at one end of the cage.

The cage, except with respect to the means for cooling the same, hereinafter described, may be of yknown construction, comprising a strong, skeletonized frame or body having an apertured lining which may be formed by drainage bars I4 arranged longitudinally within the cage body and separated by thin slits or spaces I which form thel drainage apertures for the escape of the oil or liquid expressed from the material in the cage.

As shown, the skeletonized cage body is made in, two halves or sectionsdivided on a diamet-` ricalaxial plane -of the cage. Each section pref-` erably consists of a single, integral steel casting comprising opposite longitudinal side bars I6 and spaced ribs I'I of substantially semi-circular form which' extend transversely from one to the swing for opening and closing the cage by hinge` bolts or shafts 2| on the press frame extending through 'hinge vlugs 22 at the end portions of the adjacent sides of the two sections, which are firmly secured together `to complete the cage, as by transverse bolts 23 extending through bolt holes in each section and screwed into threaded holes in the opposite section. The

Ydrainage bars may be spaced apart to provide the drainage slits between them by spacing devices 24 of any'usualor suitable construction. As thus far described, the cage may be of known construction.

For preventing the excessive or objectionable heat or high temperatures in the press during its operation, the cage is cooled by circulating cold water or other suitable cooling medium through suitable circulating passages or spaces for the purpose, with which the cage is provided. Preferably, each rib I'I, of each cage section is formed with a circulating passage 25 extending lengthwise in the rib and the several passages 25 of each section connect at one end with a header or manifold passage 26 extending lengthwise in one side bar I6 of the cage section, and at their opposite ends, the several rib passages 25 connect with a second header or manifold passage 21 extending lengthwise in the other side bar at the opposite side of the cage section. One manifold passage 25 has a branch or portion 26a extending to the exterior of the cage section for connection with an inlet pipe 28 forl the cooling water or medium, and the other manifold passage 21 has a branch or portion 21a extending to the exterior of the section for connection with a discharge pipe 29 for the cooling water or medium. The circulation of the cooling water or medium through the cage can be regulated to control the cooling effect or temperature in the press by suitable means, such as a regulating valve 30 in the pipe or pipes which supplyv the cooling medium to the cage. Preferably, the cooling medium enters the cage at its discharge end, which is the hottest, at the lower portion thereof, and passes outv at the upper or diagonally opposite portion of the feed end of the cage, which is its coolest portion. The side bars I6 of the cage sections are of ample cross sectional area to enable the provision of the manifold passages 26 and 21 therein between the inner edges of the bars and the transverse bolt holes in the bars for vthe reception of the bolts 23 that secure the cage sections together. Thus, the cage sections constructed as described, can have the cooling medium circulate through the several. ribs and side bars thereof and so ensure the necessary cooling of the cage to keep the temperature in the press down to the required point in operation.

By circulating a suitable cooling medium through each section of the cage, as described, the heat existing or generated in the press cage during the pressing operation and transmitted through the drainage bars or lining to the cage body is picked up by the circulating cooling medium and carried off, thereby preventing the cage from getting hot. The effect of thus cooling the cage is to reduce the temperature in the processing of the material and control the toasting or browning of the fiber or cake and the coloring of the oil to the desire-d degree by appropriate regulation of the temperature of the cooling medium, and regulating, as-byrrneans of the valve or valves 30, the quantity of medium circulated through the cage passages. A lighter colored oil of increased quantity and Aof higher quality and increased value and sales price is thus produced.

Some fibrous materials when being processed under excessive heat become more or less plastic or fluid, and in that condition are extruded more easily from the press cage. The described cooling of the cage keeps the bers cooler and prevents them from becoming plastic or fluid and therefore creates greater resistance to the feeding of the material through, and its extrusion from, the cage, by meansof the rotating worm. Thus, a higher pressure is developed in the cage,

resulting in a greater extraction or pressing of the oil from the fiber and leaving a lower oil content in the cake, thereby economically giving a greater yield of oil of a higher quality. Furthermore, with the cage cooled as explained, less foots are made, since the material, not being hot, will be less soft and plastic and, therefore will not squeeze out through the drainage apertures as readily. This expedites and reduces the cost of filtering the foots out of the oil.

It has been found that while cooling the worms by circulating water through the worm shaft, as heretofore done, effects some cooling of the material, it reduces the percentage of oil recovered from the material and increases the percentage of oilv left in the cake. It is believed that this is because the worm threads force the insufficiently cooled material forward without much reduction in speed or resistance. On the other hand, the cooling of the cage as hereindescribed more thoroughly cools the material and, therefore, stiifens it, sets up resistance to its fiowing forward, and builds up greater pressure in the cage, with the result of decreasing the percentage of oil left in the cake, and therefore increasing the yield of oil from the material. By cooling the cage itself, instead of cooling the worms only, greatly improved results are obtained in the operation cf the press, with increased tonnage and quality of product. Cooling of the cage by passing the cooling medium through circulating passages in the cage and keeping it away from the oil being expressed, avoids the mess and increased cost of installation and of filtering additional oil, incident to the before-mentioned way of cooling the cage by flowing cooled oil externally thereover.

I claim as my invention:

l. An expressing press comprising a cage having escape openings through its side walls for expressed liquid, and means for subjecting material in the cage to pressure and extruding material through an end opening in the cage, the body of said cage being formed with fluid circulating passages entirely within its walls comprising supply and discharge manifold passages connected by a plurality of spaced apart passages, said passages being connected in a closed circulating system, and adapted for the circulation therethrough of temperature changing fluid for regulating the temperature in the cage.

2. An expressing press, comprising a cage, and means for subjecting material in the cage to pressure and extruding material through an opening in an end of the cage, said cage having drainage apertures through its side walls for expressed liquids and a skeletonized body comprising longitudinal bars connected by transverse spaced ribs, and passages extending lengthwise in said ribs and connecting with manifold passages extending lengthwise in said longitudinal bars for the circulation through said passages of a iiuid for regulating the temperature in the cage.

3. An expressing press comprising a cage forming a pressing chamber having a discharge opening at one end and escape openings through its side walls for the expressed liquid, means for compressing and forcing material lengthwise through said chamber and through said discharge opening, the body of the cage surrounding the pressing chamber having provided entirely therein communicating supply and discharge manifold passages and spaced apart circulating passages for a cooling Huid, said passages being connected in a closed circulating system and means for admitting the 'fluid to said passages adjacent the discharge end of the cage and for the exit of the fluid adjacent the opposite end of the cage.

4. A liquid expressing press comprising a cage, and means for compressing and forcing material through the cage and extruding material through an opening in one end of the cage, said cage having side walls with drainage apertures for expressed liquid and spaced apart transverse ribs which are integrally joined to each other by parts at their ends, and said cage being provided with circulating passages for a temperature changing fluid comprising spaced passages extending lengthwise in said ribs and passages entirely vwithin said integral parts at the ends of the ribs communicating with said spaced passages.

5. A liquid expressing press comprising a cage, and means for compressing and forcing material through the cage and extruding material through an opening in one end of the cage, said cage having side walls with drainage apertures for expressed liquid and spaced apart transverse ribs which are connected to each other at opposite sides of the cage by parts forming with the ribs a single integral casting, and said cage being provided with circulating passages for a uid for regulating the temperature in the cage comprising spaced passages extending lengthwise in the several ribs and passages in said integral cast parts at the sides of the cage communicating with said spaced passages, all of said passages being entirely within said casting.

6. A press comprising a cage, and means for subjecting material in the cage to pressure to express liquid from the material. said cage having a lining providing drainage apertures for the expressed liquid, and a cage body composed of sections each consisting of a single integral casting having side bars connected by spaced apart transverse ribs, and each section being provided with circulating passages for a fluid for regulating the temperature in the cage, comprising passages extending lengthwise in the several spaced ribs and communicating with passages in said side bars.

7. A press comprising a cage, and means for subjecting material in the cage to pressure to express liquid from the material, said cage having a lining providing drainage apertures for the expressed liquid, and a cage body composed of sections each consisting of a single integral casting having side bars connected by spaced apart transverse ribs. and each section being provided with circulating passages for a fluid for regulating the temperature in the cage, comprising passages extending lengthwise in the several spaced ribs and connecting at their ends with a supply passage extending lengthwise in one side bar and with an outlet passage extending lengthwise in another side bar.

8. In an expressing press of the type in which the material to be treated is compressed and conveyed by a rotating screw lengthwise through an expressing chamber of an enclosing cage, and the expressed liquid escapes laterally through openings in said cage, that improvement which comprises a cage body formed of apertured sections integral from end tc end, each section having a supply and a discharge manifold passage entirely within and extending generally lengthwise of that section, each section also having branch passages entirely within that section and connecting said supply and discharge manifold pasmedium, whereby opportunity for leakage of said medium, at said connections to said manifold passages, into the liquid escaping from the cage will be reduced to a minimum. Y 9.. In an expressing press of the type in whc the material to be treated is compressed and conveyed generally horizontally by a rotating screw lengthwise through an expressing chamber of an enclosing cage, and the expressed liquid escapes laterally through openings in said cage, that improvement which comprises a cage body formed of apertured sections integral from end to end,

each 'section having a supply and a' discharge manifold passage entirely within and extending generally lengthwise of that section, each section valso having branch passages -entirely- Within that section and connecting said vsupply and discharge manifold passages at intervals along the length -of that section of the cage body, said cage also l having an 'apertured lining within the cage body and which -forms the outer peripheral wall of said expressing chamber and through which lining the expressed liquid escapes, said branch passages running in proximity to the surface of said body section abuttingk said lining Yto effect a heat exchange with the lining, and supply and discharge conduits connected to the manifold passages sole- 1yl adjacent the ends thereof for circulating through said cage body sections a heat exchange medium,l whereby any leakage of said medium from said connections of said conduits and passages Will not drain into the liquid escaping from the cage between those connections.

CHARLES B. UPTON. 

